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Students, faculty, law enforcement and community members will join together to march in Take Back the Night on Oct. 10 to raise awareness and gather support to end sexual and domestic violence.

The 22nd annual Fox Valley Take Back the Night (TBTN) will start at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh Reeve Memorial Union at 5:30 p.m. and march to the Christine Ann Domestic Abuse Services Center near downtown Oshkosh.

Check out this video from last year’s Take Back The Night…

“Take Back the Night highlights the problem of violence against women as well as the broader issues of sexual violence: sexual assault, rape, dating violence, sexual abuse, domestic violence and other unhealthy relationships,” said Deniz Cakmak, volunteer and student director for Campus Awareness for Relationship Education (CARE).

Cakmak first learned about TBTN while she was interning for CARE, a group that raises awareness and prevention of dating violence and harassment on campus.

“I think those are very important issues that need to be addressed and I wanted to help out in any way I could,” Cakmak said. “I think it’s very brave for survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence to tell their stories.”

Last year, approximately 450 people showed up last year for the march, said event organizer Shelly Maxwell, UW Oshkosh Counseling Center outreach coordinator.

“Take Back the Night isn’t just about coming to the event, it’s about educating yourself, becoming more involved and making a commitment for the entire year,” Maxwell said.

The event will include a resource fair and activities, a rally and a march. An art display called the Never Silent:Survivor Art Exhibition will also support TBTN in the Gail Floether Steinhilber Art Gallery on the third floor of Reeve, which will be on display Oct. 9 through 26.

The resource fair will have campus and community groups giving out information about its programs and services, Maxwell said.

“We also have very fun activities like making signs for the march, making our annual Hands banner and we’ll also be selling long sleeve t-shirts and buttons,” Maxwell said.

The event is sponsored by CARE, Christine Ann Domestic Abuse Services, Harbor House, Oshkosh Police Department, Reach Counseling Services and the University Counseling Center/Campus.

“It’s also a night for survivors to feel empowered and really go from being a victim to becoming a survivor,” Cakmak said.

Free parking is available in Lot 13 for this specific event. Connect with Take Back the Night on Facebook (www.facebook.com/foxvalleyTBTN) and on Twitter (https://twitter.com/TakeBackNight).

Contact Shelly Maxwell maxwellm@uwosh.edu or Deb Lee dlee@christineann.net if you would like to volunteer or have questions.